


Home is Where The Heart is

by Naxa1818



Category: Avengers Assemble (Cartoon)
Genre: First Kiss, Fluff, Getting Together, Gift Giving, M/M, Mutual Pining, Protective Tony Stark, aas4countdown
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-14
Updated: 2017-06-14
Packaged: 2018-11-14 02:32:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11198610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Naxa1818/pseuds/Naxa1818
Summary: Tony adds a few items to Steve's room to try to make him feel more at home. Little did Tony know, Steve was already home.





	Home is Where The Heart is

**Author's Note:**

  * Translation into 中文 available: [Home is Where The Heart is](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12113811) by [Celeste_030](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Celeste_030/pseuds/Celeste_030)



> Happy aas4countdown!!! There are 3 days left until it premieres and I can't wait! Here's my piece for the countdown...I hope you all like it!
> 
> This is set a few weeks after Season 3 episode 3 "Saving Captain Rogers."

_Your home will always be the place for which you feel the deepest affection, no matter where you are._

* * *

  **Tony**

Tony, at first, wasn’t sure why it bugged him so much. He paced around the workshop, not getting anything done, and then suddenly Steve was there with some food. He smiled at Tony, told him not to work too hard, and then left. Tony looked down at the sandwich Steve made for him with a side of apple slices and cubes of cheese (Steve knew his weakness for cheese). That had made the mist clear, so to speak, and he laughed because it was so obvious before.

A few weeks ago when Baron Zemo hypnotized Steve, Tony had seen that Steve hadn’t really unpacked his room. The Avengers had been back together for a couple of months since villains started showing up again. Even when the Avengers weren’t together Steve and Tony had always been in contact. But Tony had been a little hurt that Steve hadn’t unpacked. Then when he realized Steve was in trouble, it left his mind. He and Natasha rescued Steve, and when they returned he was somewhat relieved that Steve had been meaning to unpack.

That’s what had been bugging him. He wanted Steve to be at home and feel at home. Steve had once told him long ago that he didn’t truly have a home and it had broken his heart a little. So he always tried to make sure Steve felt welcome, first at the mansion, and now at Avengers tower. He knew Steve had a small apartment in Brooklyn mostly because he wanted a place where he grew up, and Tony understood that. He wondered if Steve thought that apartment was more of his home than the tower.

Once Steve had returned that day, he started to unpack all of his remaining boxes. Tony was proud of himself for remembering Steve’s favorite ice cream, butter pecan, and the look in Steve’s eyes when he mentioned it was pure gold. It was like Steve couldn’t believe someone would remember that. That alone gave Tony motivation to add to Steve’s room. Natasha had eventually left and he helped Steve unpack the rest of the boxes. Not to his surprise, Steve didn’t own much.

That had only intensified his desire to give Steve nice things because he thought Steve deserved everything. He also knew Steve liked his area simple and quiet, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t spice his room up a bit and keep it to Steve’s wishes. Maybe if there was a little more to Steve’s room, he’d think it was more of a home and not just a place to stay.

So now he’s smiling down at his sandwich that Steve brought him. He was already thinking of things he could do and the first thing would be the ice cream machine. Steve hadn’t objected to it, so it was a must now. That impatience he was feeling earlier was gone and it was because he couldn’t let his mind off of Steve.

He took a bite of his sandwich and started coming up with things that he could get. He lost track of time and ate everything on his plate. He was looking at his screen contemplating something when a hand gently touched his shoulder. Startled, he looked up and quickly swiped away what was on the screen when he saw Steve staring down at him.

“What are you working on, Tony?” Steve asked, curious.

“Nothing to worry your head over, Cap.” Tony stood and smiled. “Thanks for the grub by the way.”

“No problem,” he replied as he picked up the plate. “Gotta make sure to keep you healthy. If I don’t bring you food you forget to eat sometimes.” Steve grinned mischievously. “What would you do without me?”

“Ha.” Tony placed his hand on Steve’s shoulder. “I don’t know and I’m not sure I’d like to find out.” He tapped his chin, thinking. “Come to think of it I don’t remember what it was like before you showed up.”

“From past records you didn’t eat or sleep much,” Friday commented.

“Always helpful, Friday,” Tony deadpanned.

“My pleasure, Boss.”

“Well, I’m still trying to get him to have better sleeping habits,” Steve joked. “Maybe one day I’ll be able to get him to bed at a decent time.” He winked.

Tony’s jaw dropped. Those words could be harmless coming from Steve, but to Tony there was a whole set of ideas in his head on what they implied. He wanted it badly, too. He wasn’t sure what Steve was playing at, he was looking at Tony innocently, but he was also smiling proudly.

“With…” he swallowed hard. “The right motivation I’ll go to bed at a decent time.”

“Hm, good to know,” Steve said and turned to leave the workshop.

Tony stared at the door as it closed behind Steve and he couldn’t help but think of all the on and off flirting they’ve done in the last few years. When the Avengers came back together years ago, when Tony thought Steve had died by the Red Skull but he just ended up being teleported, he vowed to himself that he would spend more time with Steve. Not that they didn’t talk or go on missions together but Tony made it a point to try to keep a distance with Steve since he had feelings for him.

And thinking that he had lost Steve for those few days were the worst days of his life, and having the team back together was great, but having Steve next to him everyday was amazing. Steve had felt the same apparently because Tony had a moment of near death too when his arc reactor was taken out. After all was said and done Steve had brought him into a tight hug and Tony held onto him like his life depended on it.

So they started spending a lot more time together the second time the Avengers were together (which is saying something cause when Steve was brought out of the ice they had spent a good amount of time together then as well). And then over time Tony couldn’t help but let some flirtations out at Steve and, well, Steve had flirted back. The flirting was fun, but Tony wondered if that’s all it was or if there was some unspoken thing between them that they both were too afraid to bring up.

So Tony was grinning at the door and now that he knew what his plan was for Steve’s room he needed a time to be able to do it without Steve there. He wouldn’t do anything to the room that would upset Steve but he hoped it would help him feel at home.

By the time the next afternoon rolled around, Tony had all he wanted ordered and it was on the way to the tower. Most of what he ordered were parts because he wanted to make all that he had in mind. To him, that would make it far more special. There was still the problem of figuring out how to make everything without Steve knowing. Steve always loved to check on Tony in the lab or even hang around in there. It wouldn’t be too much of a problem if Tony put the workshop on lockdown. The big issue was getting Steve out of the tower long enough for Tony to get everything ready. That way when Steve returned he’d have a big surprise waiting for him.

“Sir, Captain Rogers is on his way to the workshop,” Friday said, snapping Tony out of his train of thought.

“Thanks, Friday.”

Tony got rid of anything that could reveal his secret plans to Steve and not a minute later Steve was walking into the lab with his uniform on.

“Is there a villain we need to go fight?” Tony asked, curious as to why Steve was in uniform. He did notice that Steve liked to wear the uniform a lot, not that he was complaining, but if Steve really was in a downtime mood he was always in more comfortable clothing.

“Not right now,” Steve replied. “I actually have been called for a short mission from Shield. Just wanted to come tell you.”

“Oh. Do you need back up? I came come help, you know.”

Steve shook his head. “This shouldn’t be hard or take long. Plus, if I need anything I’ll call you.”

“What’s the mission?” Tony was surprised Shield was asking Steve to go on a solo mission especially when they knew the Avengers were together.

“Just go to a warehouse and extract some information that could involve Hydra. The threat level is very low.”

Tony was on the fence on letting Steve go alone. He knew Clint and Natasha were on a mission together, Hulk and Thor weren’t exactly the right candidates for a stealth mission, and Sam was busy with school.

“You sure you won’t need my help?” Tony had a slightly bad feeling about the whole situation so he couldn’t help but convey his concern. “I mean going by yourself…”

Steve smiled and laid his hand on Tony’s shoulder. “I’ll be fine and I promise if something happens you’ll be the first one I call.”

“Okay,” Tony said. If Steve was confident in the low threat level of the mission, Tony believed him. He would keep in contact, though, just in case. And this also solved a whole other problem. “How long will you be gone?”

“A few days probably. No more than a week for sure. I doubt it’ll take that long though.”

Tony smiled. This was the perfect opportunity to get everything ready for Steve’s room and when he returned he’d get his surprise. “Okay, but I’d like for you to check-in every now and then.”

Steve hadn’t removed his hand, and he squeezed Tony’s shoulder. “I promise I’ll keep in touch. No more than three or four days gone.”

“Be safe, Steve.”

“I will, Tony. Try not to get into too much trouble while I’m away.”

And then he was gone.

Over the next few days Tony got the parts he ordered and worked on the thing’s he wanted for Steve’s room. He wasn’t adding too much, but just enough to maybe give the room more life. Steve checked-in with Tony every so often, which kept him at ease. The mission wasn’t over and there was more to check out then Steve thought, but no dangers either, which was good. So Tony was taking advantage of this time of no villains to get everything done. Steve had told him it would be another few days and Tony was determined to have the room done when he returned.

Towards the end of the week, Tony was finished. Everything in Steve’s room was ready. He was really proud of it and he hoped Steve would love it too.

The wall opposite of Steve’s bed there was a new, high-definition television. Steve could watch any channel he wanted, order anything he wanted and he could lounge around in his bed while he watched it. He knew Steve wouldn’t do that much, but even so he wanted Steve to have the option. Just below the T.V. was an ice cream maker Tony was excited about. It already had everything ready to go. All Steve would need to do was press a button, make sure a cup was in the small compartment where the ice cream came out, and then his favorite ice cream would be made right then and there.

Next to the ice cream maker was a popcorn machine (Steve loved popcorn) and a mini-fridge for anything he’d wanted if he was in a movie-watching mood. That was all the thing’s Tony had made for him. He did notice a shortage on certain art supplies so he ordered some for Steve. There was a canvas that was covered on the easel, and Tony desperately wanted to know what the painting was, but he refused to invade Steve’s privacy. All in all, the room was still spacious, and open, not too much was added and Tony thought this was going to be a success. He hoped so anyway. He wouldn’t deny that he was nervous about it all.

Once he knew everything was good to go, he left and decided to work on some much needed projects that desired his attention. He wasn’t sure how much time had passed but eventually Friday gave him a notice that he had been without sleep for too long so Tony decided to go to bed.

When he woke up the next day he went down into the lab to see if Steve had checked in. He hadn’t.

“Friday, when did Steve last check in?”

Now that it had come to his attention the mission was taking Steve more than a week, which was strange.

“Captain Rogers last called in thirty-six hours ago, Sir.”

“Hm, that’s not good. How long has he been out on the mission itself now?”

To be honest Tony knew that he had lost track of the exact amount of time Steve had been gone since he was working on his project all week, but he knew it was taking too long now.

“Captain Rogers has been gone approximately eight days, five hours, and twenty minutes.”

Tony’s stomach twisted in that instant. The mission was taking longer than it should have and Steve should have checked in already since his last log. Of course, Tony knew there was a good chance everything was fine, but something was off. He could feel it. Even when Steve had mentioned the mission was going to be easy, he felt uneasy since the beginning.

“Track his Avengers card, Friday.”

“I can’t track it. It seems to be off.”

Okay, he was going to find Steve right now. “Friday, can you pinpoint the location of his last call?” Tony said as he stepped on the platform in the middle of the room. He didn’t take long before he was suited up.

“Yes, Boss. His last location was in Eastern Europe. Would you like me to set the course?”

“Yeah,” he said as the faceplate closed. “Put all the power in the thrusters. Let’s get there as soon as we can.”

“You got it, Boss. Sending you Captain Rogers last known location.”

The ceiling opened, he flew out, and had only one thing on his mind.

He was going to find Steve. 

* * *

  **Steve**

The first thing Steve realized was how dark it was. The second was how hard it was to breath, and that he was in an enclosed space. It took him a moment to remember what happened: the warehouse he was at had a series of underground tunnels, which ended up leading him to an underground facility. It wasn’t very big compared to the huge facilities Steve was used to, but it was a Hydra hideout where the information he was looking for was hidden.

It wasn’t hard to take out the Hydra goons. They were easy and Steve thought he was almost ready to go home. Then at the last second Baron Zemo showed up with an abnormally big energy gun. Steve held up his shield ready to block the attack, but Zemo didn’t shoot at him, he shot at the floor. He fell through but was able to catch on to the edge. Then Zemo was shooting all around him so he couldn’t hang on to anything. Apparently, this underground workshop was disposable because Zemo was destroying everything around Steve. He fell down the hole and before he could jump back out the whole ceiling fell on top of him.

A piece of cement hit his head, knocked him out, and now he was in the dark by himself and could barely move around or see anything. This definitely wasn’t how he thought the mission would go.

He struggled to move and winced when he realized his foot was caught under a large segment of the entire building that had fallen on him.

“Damnit,” he hissed.

He relaxed for a moment to calm himself. Getting worked up wouldn’t solve anything. It would only make things worse. He knew he had to try and get out as soon as possible so he reached for his Avengers card in his back pocket. He sighed when he pulled out only a piece of the card. Of course it was broken. It must have cracked when he hit the ground. Now Tony couldn’t track where he was.

 _Tony,_ he thought. Tony might be wondering where he was. He wasn’t sure how long he was out but he could guarantee that it was long enough for Tony to probably notice. He hoped, anyway. Maybe Tony wouldn’t notice that he didn’t call in like he normally did. Tony did have his own life after all.

Steve shook his head try to get rid of the dark thoughts that started to plague his mind. He wanted to be back at the tower. He wanted to be home with Tony. A sudden dread ran through him as he sat in complete darkness. A fear he had felt before, one where he wouldn’t be able to go home ever again. He usually never thought like this but the feeling lingered recently. When he had been hypnotized and then snapped out of it he realized he could have never come home to Tony again, and that was something he never wanted to happen.

This mission lasted far longer than he wanted and now he wasn’t sure what was going to happen. He didn’t even know how far down he was considering he fell through the floor of an underground building. But that wouldn’t stop him. If there was one thing he had it was determination. He was going home to Tony no matter what.

He tried lifting his foot, struggled through the pain as he freed it from the rubble. It hurt but it was manageable. He planted his feet firmly and pushed on the block above him with his hands and upper back. He managed to move the piece out of the way. He was hoping for some light, anything, but he was still in complete darkness. He was able to move around a little more, but he was buried deep.

He leaned against the destroyed wall letting off some pressure from his foot. Even in the darkness he could see the outline of everything around him. He would have to try his luck to move more without collapsing the foundation. He crossed his arms, frustrated because if he hadn’t of been knocked out he might have an idea of how far down he was.

The whole situation was somewhat infuriating. He had everything planned and now it was ruined. He had a painting at home, ready to give to Tony. He had accepted the mission because he thought it would be short and it would calm his nerves about the gift. He was tired of dancing around Tony, flirting but not having the courage within to tell Tony how he really felt. If there was a major weakness he had it was the matters of confessing his love for someone. He’d had feelings for a few people before, but nothing ever amounted to the love he felt for Tony. It was ridiculous, really, that little kid from Brooklyn who never could get a date was afraid of telling Tony how he felt. Mostly it was hard to imagine Tony saying yes to him.

So he drew a painting of Tony from the day he was rescued from Zemo not three weeks ago. He wanted to give it to Tony, ask him to dinner, and see how Tony felt in return. Nerves took over and now because of that he was stuck in a dark hole with maybe no way out. Well, it was Zemo’s fault he was in the situation but he had taken the mission to try to get over his fear of possibility losing Tony when he told his feelings. Sometimes life really kicked him in the face.

Then there was a noise, faint and distant. His super soldier hearing was the only reason he could hear something that far away. He stayed quiet, trying to keep his breathing slow as he listened. Then what he heard was music to his ears.

 _Steve!_ His name was being called. It was so far away from where he currently was, but he would recognize that voice anyway. It was Tony.

“Tony!” He yelled with everything he could. “Tony, I’m down here!”

A beat, and then Tony’s voice was a lot closer. “Steve! I’m coming!”

It didn’t take long for Steve to hear Tony lifting all the debris out of the way until finally the last piece was picked up and tossed away. The light blinded him for a moment but his eyes adjusted quickly and he looked up to see Iron Man staring down at him.

“Boy am I glad to see you,” Steve sighed happily.

The faceplate lifted up and the first thing he noted was the worry in Tony’s eyes. “Finally,” Tony breathed out. “I was really worried.”

“I can admit I was a little worried myself,” he chuckled lightly.

Tony reached out his hand. “Are you hurt?”

Steve grabbed it and Tony flew them out of the hole. He also noted he had fallen a lot farther down then he originally thought.

“Nothing serious. Just a sprained ankle, I think. It’ll heal fast.” Once they were back on the actual floor of the building, they stood close to each other, and Steve could tell Tony hadn’t calmed down. He didn’t let go of Tony’s hand, and he squeezed it even though Tony probably couldn’t feel it through the armor. “I’m fine, Tony.”

Tony shook his head and looked away. “I knew I should have come with you. I had a bad feeling from the start.”

“You came for me now. I’m fine and you’re here.” Steve felt bold so he reached over and gently moved Tony’s chin to face him. Tony’s eye’s widened, his mouth slightly open as if he wanted to say something. “Thank you for coming for me.”

Tony huffed out a breath and smiled. “No need to thank me. I’m just glad I found you. Took some hours but luckily I know you well enough to know your patterns.”

Steve smiled back. “I’m glad you know too.” He dropped his hand. “Let’s see if they didn’t wipe out any information that we could use. I’m ready to get out of here and go home.”

Steve took a few steps but stopped when Tony didn’t move with him. He hadn’t let go of Tony’s hand. He looked up and once again, Tony looked shocked. He wasn’t sure what he did or said, but now he was a little concerned.

“Is something wrong?” he asked.

“Oh, um…” Tony must have realized he zoned out. “No, nothing’s wrong.” He looked down at their hands intertwined and then looked back up at Steve. “Yeah, let’s see if there’s anything we need and then…go home.” He smiled softly.

“Good,” Steve agreed.

They looked around the whole place and there was nothing to gain. That annoyed Steve a bit, that after the week and how it ended he got nothing. But looking at Tony, who was fussing about his foot, made him feel a lot better. He didn’t want Steve walking on it so mostly Tony would grab him by the waist and hover everywhere until they could check the computers for information. Steve thought Tony was overreacting, but he always loved flying with him so he didn’t really mind.

Eventually they exited the building and Steve was just happy to see the sun and blue sky.

“The quinjet I took isn’t far from here.” He gestured to the south of the building.

“Good, I’m carrying you there. You aren’t walking with your foot like that,” Tony immediately replied.

Steve chuckled. “Alright, ready when you are Iron Man.”

Tony’s arm wrapped tightly around his waist and then suddenly Tony’s other arm lifted Steve’s legs up. Steve quickly hung on to Tony’s shoulders and he could feel his cheeks heating up when he realized the position he was in. What people call the bridal style—Steve had carried Tony like this countless times before, but never the other way around.

“You should see your face,” Tony said, happily, “it’s bright red.”

He knew how red his face was. He could feel it.

“You hold me like this a lot when I’m hurt.” Tony was smiling. “So I thought I’d return the favor.”

Steve returned the smile and was about to say something when Tony’s faceplate went down and he took off without warning. It didn’t take long to get to the quinjet and Tony carried him all the way inside and let Steve down at the front of the jet.

“Thank you, Tony.”

Something was different, Steve could tell. Something really good. Not that it wasn’t always great between them, but there was always this unspoken thing they had. Steve knew it was there and he thought Tony felt it too. Now, for whatever reason, that unspoken thing was breaking. It was fear, Steve figured. He admitted to himself that that fear of not only rejection but the loss of what they had made him never really go beyond flirting. Maybe Tony felt the same and now they could be more open. Maybe Tony really did have feelings for him.

“Anytime, Cap,” Tony winked. “Now let’s get you back to the tower.”

The ride home felt shorter than it actually was. Steve was admittedly pretty tired so he fell asleep for part of the ride. When he woke they were just twenty minutes away and it was spent in a comfortable silence between them.

The jet landed on the landing pad at the tower. Once they hanger opened, Steve held on to Tony’s shoulder for support. His foot still hurt so he wanted to keep as much pressure off of it as possible. Then Tony got out of the suit and they headed towards Steve’s room. Once they got to his door Tony stopped.

“Tony?” Steve questioned.

Tony shifted uneasily, fidgeting back on forth on his feet. He looked anywhere but at Steve. It was obvious he was uncomfortable about something and Steve was afraid it was something he did.

“Um, I just wanted you to know. There are some…additions to your room,” he said uncertainly.

“Oh?” Steve raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah, just so you know…” Tony rubbed the back of his neck.

Without another word Steve opened the door to his room. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but it wasn’t this. Not that it was bad, quite the opposite in fact. There was a TV hanging on the wall opposite his bed. Below it were a few small machines. One was for ice cream, the words butter pecan painted on the side. There was a cup in the slot where the ice cream came out and on the side was an attachment that held spoons and more cups. Next to it was a small popcorn maker. On top of it were old school popcorn bags that Steve remembered getting at the fair as a kid. There were some different seasoning salts for the popcorn as well. And next to that was the smallest appliance, a mini fridge.

“Wow,” Steve said.

“I understand if you don’t want them in here. I just thought you might like something a little extra in here.”

Steve grinned as he looked at the very unique, very Tony machines that sat against the wall. He remembered when Tony mentioned it a few weeks ago, and he hadn’t objected but he didn’t actually think Tony would really make him an ice cream machine. Not only that but he also made him a popcorn machine, and Tony knew how much he loved popcorn because it was something he loved as a child too. Then there was the mini fridge, which was most likely for drinks because how could you not have something to drink with popcorn.

Then he was thinking of all the ways he could enjoy these gifts with Tony. Steve usually had his quiet time in his room but if there was one person he’d want to share that space with it was Tony. They could relax on the couch eating ice cream. Once they were done Tony could lay his head down on Steve’s lap. He’d fall asleep and Steve would just let him get his rest. They could make popcorn and lay in bed watching TV for hours together. Movies, TV shows, it didn’t matter to Steve. What mattered was they were together. Eventually they would turn off the TV, maybe kiss and start to explore each other and then—

“Anyway,” Tony coughed. “I’m going to go to the lab…I’m sorry if it wasn’t to your liking.”

Steve snapped out of his train of thought and by the time he turned around Tony had left the room.

“Tony, wait!” Steve called and as he went for the door he stopped and noticed all the new painting supplies as well. He smiled and went into the hallway to see that Tony was already gone.

Oh, he was going after Tony but first he wanted to get his gift. Also, he was going to take the quickest shower of his life. He wanted to hurry because he didn’t want Tony to think the worst.

“Friday, tell Tony not to lockdown the lab. I’m coming down just give me a minute.”

“Of course, Captain Rogers.”

Steve quickly showered, changed into more comfortable clothing and grabbed the canvas, tucked it under his arm and headed to the lab. He was a little nervous, but more than anything he was happy. Tony had made him a few things that would be great to share with him and now he was going to give Tony his gift.

Then he was in the lab and Tony was facing away from him looking at some schematics for his suit.

“Tony.”

“Yeah, Cap,” he replied without turning around.

“Turn around, please. I want to talk to you.”

Tony waved his hand making the schematics disappear. He turned slowly and walked toward Steve to stop in front of him. There was evident worry in his eyes and Steve was determined to make it go away.

“Why did you run away so quickly?” Steve asked.

“I, uh…you didn’t say anything about what I did to your room. I thought you didn’t like it so…” Tony stopped when Steve grinned. “Why are you smiling like that?”

“Tony, I loved everything you did.” He replied and watched Tony’s eyes go wide with hope. “Sorry, I was just lost in thought before. Everything you did was amazing. You kept it simple…but you also added a few things you knew I’d enjoy.”

“Well,” Tony said, finally starting to smile. “I just thought it would be nice to have a few things added and I made them myself so I could keep them small.”

Steve stepped forward getting right in front of Tony. “Thank you.”

“I just wanted….you to feel at home? I guess it was stupid. An ice cream and popcorn machine aren’t going to make you feel at home,” Tony grimaced.

“Is that what this is about?”

“You told me once that you didn’t have a home anymore…”

“Tony,” Steve said firmly and placed his hand not currently holding the canvas on his shoulder. “I said that years ago when I was first brought out of the ice. This is my home…” And after all this time Steve took a breath and knew what he had to say—something he’d been meaning to say for along time. “Tony…you are my home.” Steve squeezed his shoulder, and Tony’s lips were slowly curling upwards into a smile, soft and warm. It made Steve’s heart flutter. “The mansion was my home years ago because you were there and now the tower is my home because you’re here. My home is wherever you are, Tony because _you are my home_.”

Tony took a step forward and they were now only inches apart. He was smiling, that smile Steve loved where Tony was just completely and utterly happy. Steve moved his hand from Tony’s shoulder to his face, rubbing his cheek with his thumb.

“I don’t know how you feel, Tony, but I love you. I’ve loved you for a long time.”

Tony fell into Steve; he wrapped his arms around him, and stuck his face in the crook of Steve’s neck. It made Steve shiver, but he held on to Tony with his free hand. Tony huffed out a laugh, his breath hot on Steve’s neck.

“You’re…laughing?” Steve asked.

“God, Steve. I love you too,” he leaned back to look up at Steve.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, Steve. So much.”

They both surged forward then, desperate to feel each other. Tony’s lips were hot on Steve’s and he felt like he was on fire. He tilted his head to deepen the kiss, held on to Tony with everything he had. The kiss was everything he imagined and more.

Eventually they pulled apart, both breathless. Tony’s lips were red from their kisses and Steve suspected his looked the same.

“Well,” Tony said and licked his lips. “This is probably the best day ever.”

Steve laughed and went in for another kiss. This one was short and sweet and he loved how now he could kiss Tony whenever he wanted.

“You’re my home too, Steve,” Tony whispered.

“I’m glad we have an understanding,” Steve said, which made Tony laugh.

“What’s this you’ve been holding?” Tony nudged Steve’s arm that wasn’t holding on to Tony’s waist.

“Oh,” Steve said and pulled up the canvas. “This is for you…”

The picture was Tony in the Iron Man suit on top of a cliff. The helmet was retracted, and Steve had this imprinted in his memory because Tony had been looking at him with a smile on his face. One of the most beautiful sights Steve had ever seen. So he drew it.

“Wow,” Tony said as he took it.

“This was from when you and Natasha rescued me a few weeks ago…on the cliff,” Steve explained.

“Yeah, I was just happy to have you safe,” Tony replied.

“I know you’ve seen some of the drawings of you I have in my room, but there are also some you haven’t seen.”

“Really?” Tony raised an eyebrow.

“What can I say. When you love someone they draw a lot of inspiration out of you.”

“You’ll show me those, right?” Tony made his way back to his desk to set the painting down.

“Yeah, I will.” Steve followed slowly making sure not to hurt his foot even more.

“Good. I’m going to put this up in here somewhere.” Tony turned and wrapped his arms around Steve. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Steve kissed him.

“So…can I take you out to dinner tonight?” Tony asked when they parted.

“Hmm, sounds great to me.”

“Oh, how I will spoil you.” Tony grinned.

Steve chuckled. “No need for that. Being with you is all I need.”

Tony sighed. “The things you say…” he shook his head. “I’ll do it anyway.”

“It’s just the truth,” Steve shrugged. “And then when we come _home_ ,” he emphasized which made Tony smile even wider. “We can maybe watch a movie in my room? Make some popcorn…have some ice cream for dessert.”

“Sounds just about perfect,” Tony replied.

Steve leaned forward to rest his forehead against Tony’s. “Maybe tonight I can get you to bed at a decent time,” he teased.

Tony laughed and shook his head. “No way I’m going to bed early when I’m going to be with you.”

Tony leaned up for another kiss and Steve gladly returned it. They were both smiling through the kiss, and so happy because they were _home._


End file.
